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As the world watches the Russian invasion of Ukraine unfold, UkraineAlert delivers the best Atlantic Council expert insight and analysis on Ukraine twice a week directly to your inbox.


editor’s picks

Latest analysis


UkraineAlert

Jul 4, 2026

Putin may gamble on mobilization to rescue Russia’s Ukraine invasion

By
Mykola Bielieskov

With the tide turning in Ukraine's favor on the battlefield and Russian manpower problems mounting, Kremlin dictator Vladimir Putin may soon be forced to gamble on a politically risky mass mobilization in order to rescue his invasion, writes Mykola Bielieskov.


Conflict


Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Jul 4, 2026

Ukraine is showing NATO the future of warfare

By
Myroslava Gongadze

Over five years, Ukraine has done more than expose Russia's weaknesses. It has revealed the future of warfare. NATO leaders must now demonstrate at the Ankara Summit that they are ready for the new security environment, writes Myroslava Gongadze.


Conflict


Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Jul 2, 2026

The West can learn from Ukraine’s success against Russian propaganda

By
Ryan Prior

While Ukraine often garners headlines for its drone warfare innovation, the country is also producing a playbook for countering Russian propaganda. This Ukrainian experience offers important lessons for the wider Western world, writes Ryan Prior.


Conflict


Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Jun 30, 2026

Ukraine’s blockade of Crimea puts Putin’s greatest victory under threat

By
Peter Dickinson

Crimea has long been seen as Vladimir Putin’s greatest victory, but Ukraine's drone blockade is now turning the Russian-occupied peninsula into an embarrassing symbol of imperial overreach, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict


Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Jun 30, 2026

Banning Russian soldiers from the EU is a common sense security measure

By
Elena Davlikanova, Tatiana Vorozhko

Supporters of the current proposal to ban Russian military personnel from the EU see it as a common sense security measure in response to the Kremlin's escalating hybrid war against Europe, write Elena Davlikanova and Tatiana Vorozhko.


Conflict


Cybersecurity


UkraineAlert

Jun 25, 2026

Belarus is quietly preparing to play a larger role in Russia’s Ukraine war

By
Hanna Liubakova

Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka is not enthusiastic about the prospect of joining Russia’s Ukraine invasion, but he appears to be steadily building up his country’s military capacity in case he finds himself pushed more directly into the war, writes Hanna Liubakova.


Belarus


Conflict


UkraineAlert

Jun 25, 2026

The West can learn from Ukraine’s AI future vision beyond the battlefield

By
Andrew D’Anieri

The US and Europe are already looking to Ukraine for the next generation of defense technologies. As Western countries debate their own AI strategies, they would likewise do well to examine Ukraine as a similar starting point for further innovation, writes Andrew D’Anieri.


Artificial Intelligence


Conflict


UkraineAlert

Jun 23, 2026

Putin vowed to demilitarize Ukraine. Instead, he created a major military power.

By
Peter Dickinson

When Putin launched the full-scale invasion in 2022, he identified the “demilitarization” of Ukraine as one his two primary war aims. It is now clear that he has failed in the most spectacular fashion imaginable, writes Peter Dickinson.


Conflict


Defense Policy


UkraineAlert

Jun 23, 2026

Ukraine tightens drone blockade of Russian-occupied Crimea

By
Maksym Beznosiuk, William Dixon

Ukraine is currently conducting a mid-range drone strike campaign aiming to cut access to Russian-occupied Crimea and place the Black Sea peninsula under a logistics lockdown, write Maksym Beznosiuk and William Dixon.


Conflict


Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Jun 23, 2026

Russia intensifies shadow war to undermine support for Ukraine

By
Zahar Hryniv

Russia is waging an escalating shadow war against the West as the Kremlin attempts to intimidate Europe and deter further support for Ukraine, writes Zahar Hryniv.


Conflict


Cybersecurity

spotlight

The views expressed in UkraineAlert are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Atlantic Council, its staff, or its supporters.

The Eurasia Center’s mission is to enhance transatlantic cooperation in promoting stability, democratic values, and prosperity in Eurasia, from Eastern Europe and Turkey in the West to the Caucasus, Russia, and Central Asia in the East.

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Content

UkraineAlert

Nov 17, 2016

The Russian Plot against Europe

By Alina Polyakova

Russia’s influence reaches deep into Western Europe. France has a major far-right, Eurosceptic, and openly pro-Russian party that receives funding from the Kremlin. In London, Brexit provides an opportunity for Moscow to gain a toehold in British politics. Germany’s former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder serves as chairman of the Russian-German pipeline Nord Stream. But these examples […]

European Union France

UkraineAlert

Nov 15, 2016

Ukraine’s Reforms Are Pointless without Resolving Security Issues

By Andreas Umland

Making Western assistance to Kyiv more effective is crucial to Ukraine’s future. Yet the West’s current approach is plagued by a strategic defect. When Western aid and Kyiv’s reforms reach a tipping point, they will trigger increasingly aggressive counter-reactions from Moscow for domestic political reasons in Russia. Until Ukraine’s fundamental security challenges are met, Western […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 14, 2016

Watch Out, Silicon Valley. Here Comes Ukraine

By Yuliia Horovetska

Ukraine has the potential to become Europe’s top hub for information technology and other innovation-based industries. Some major private sector businesses have already chosen Ukraine as the site of their research and development centers; among them are Aricent, Boeing, Ericsson, Oracle, and Siemens. Private business initiatives in Ukraine have given birth to well-known startups like […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 14, 2016

We Are Building the New Ukraine, Three Years after Euromaidan

By Yuriy Didula

The need for reconciliation between eastern and western Ukraine is often emphasized in Ukrainian and international media, and has been the subject of dozens of roundtables in the past couple of years. Though originally from western Ukraine, I have lived and worked in the east for nearly two years, and I have come to realize […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 9, 2016

Here’s Why Nord Stream 2 Isn’t the Only Game in Town

By Olga Bielkova

Most Russia watchers, including those at the Atlantic Council, recognize that in this age of hybrid warfare, energy trade is a potent weapon. What has changed with Nord Stream 2 is that the weapon is now pointed directly at the EU rather than Ukraine, and it is masquerading as a commercial project. But who could […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 9, 2016

Does Saakashvili’s Resignation Mark the End of Reform in Ukraine?

By Diane Francis

Mikheil Saakashvili’s resignation this week does not mark the failure of reform efforts in Ukraine. It opens a new chapter. “Odesa can only develop once Kyiv will be freed from these bribe takers, who directly patronize organized crime and lawlessness,” he bluntly told journalists when he announced he was quitting on November 7. This opinion […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 9, 2016

Ukraine, Not Syria, Should Be Top Priority for President Trump

By Melinda Haring

Resolving the conflict in Ukraine should be a higher priority for the United States and Europe than addressing the civil war in Syria, said Archbishop Zoria Yevstratiy, representative of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church Kyiv Patriarchate, during a visit to Washington, DC. “I’m very sorry about the Syrian people, but Ukraine can’t be compared. Syria never […]

Russia Syria

UkraineAlert

Nov 9, 2016

Nerve-Racking November: Ukraine’s Energy Subsidies Leave Some in the Cold

By Oksana Bedratenko

“The first week of November is so nerve-racking. Until I get the bill, I don’t know if my subsidy has been extended for this heating season and what amount will it cover,” my friend’s mother, a 69-year old pensioner in Kyiv, said when I called to check on her. “With these high utility prices—if the […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 8, 2016

Here’s How to Fix Public Broadcasting in Ukraine

By Roman Shutov

Zurab Alasania’s resignation from the position of director general of the National TV and Radio Broadcasting Company of Ukraine (NTU) has roused concerns about the future of public broadcasting reform in Ukraine. Although some experts believe it is already too late to reverse reforms, the coming months will determine the future of public broadcasting just […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Nov 7, 2016

Four Swift Blows to Putin’s Influence in Europe

By John E. Herbst

Moscow retains substantial influence in Europe. However, its ability to leverage that influence against Ukraine appears to be declining, as four decisions over the past two months illustrate. Moscow’s intervention in Syria is weakening the Kremlin’s position vis a vis Ukraine in the views of European policymakers. This was evident on October 12 at the […]

European Union International Organizations